WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement:
“I am grateful that a ceasefire deal was announced to finally release dozens of hostages kidnapped over 15 months ago by Hamas and increase the flow of desperately needed humanitarian resources to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. This agreement is a necessary diplomatic breakthrough, and I thank President Biden and his administration, as well as officials from Qatar and Egypt, for the invaluable role they played in this process. I also appreciate President-elect Trump’s team for their efforts to help facilitate this deal. I urge both sides to take their respective steps to swiftly implement the agreed upon terms of the deal and to continue negotiations so that all hostages–including American citizens–are reunited with their families, a lasting ceasefire is achieved, and the work to rebuild a Gaza free from Hamas’s terror begins.
“I am hopeful that adherence to this agreement can be the next step towards building a just and lasting peace, with Israelis and Palestinians living side by side in mutual peace, security, dignity, and recognition. The work must continue to achieve a two-state solution that affirms and protects Israel’s right to exist as a democratic Jewish state and ensures the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and a state of their own.”
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